http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18507726/site/newsweek/

I thought this was a good article to help the common person understand the danger of China's self-centered economic policy and its threat to the free trade system.

Thought this paragraph was ironic. Why is it that a "communist" country like China does little-to-nothing to help out its people?

But if you want to skip to the moral of the story:
When are we going to start holding China accountable? When are short-sighted corporations and the short-sighted government going to get their acts straight?

__________________
"Man lives in the sunlit world of that which he believes to be reality. But unseen by most is an underworld, a place that is just as real... but not as brightly lit... A DARK SIDE!"
-opening from Tales From the Darkside

We can’t hold them accountable because they have us by the short and curlys. The situation is the way it is because, yes - they are determine to focus on their own economic prosperity call it “self-centered” if you want, while we – are determined to maintain our international “everybody screw us while we plaster on a smile” technique and are too spineless to do anything about it.

Yes, China is manipulating their currency, but how are you going to confront them when your high priority is to be “loved by the world” They think what they’re doing is right, where do we have the justification to tell them what is right and wrong?

...After all...it’s all relative

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"A government that is big enough to give you all you want is big enough to take it all away."

The Solution for Illegal Immigrants (Gray areas discussed throughout the thread)

What they are doing isn't actually better for them in the long run. It's typical Communist Party thinking for them... the same great minds that thought their laughable cheap car would saturate the market.
It is best for all countries to have a sustainable and mutually beneficial system of free trade so that we can make maximum use of comparative advantage and change more relations with other countries from military relations (which cost money) to business relations (which make us all money). It is sometimes necessary to take a short-term cut for a long-term boost. Note that our stock market has been doing quite well under the current free trade system... and the whole world is seeing economic growth... even Africa is doing better than expected.
We are doing the smart thing... except we are not pulling out the sticks on China when they threaten the whole system. We should have placed sanctions on them long ago for their behavior- how can they be part of free trade when they undermine it. Part of the point of engagement was putting them in a place where we can put pressure on them... It doesn't work if we do not put pressure on them.
But unfortunately many business lobbyists are just as short-sighted as China and are willing to endure their mercantilism that hurts us and the world... for their short-term gains from Chinese labor.

__________________
"Man lives in the sunlit world of that which he believes to be reality. But unseen by most is an underworld, a place that is just as real... but not as brightly lit... A DARK SIDE!"
-opening from Tales From the Darkside

All this means is that the Chinese save and so are not on the heavy consumer side of commercialism. They put their money into things like US bonds reaping the reward of US debt.

But I thought one or the corner stones of the capitalist belief was that the rich contribute their wealth because they were bigger savers?

They're supposed to contribute to themselves because they're the biggest investers. If all they do is save, they contribute nothing and rightly the poor will eventually eat them.
But the point here is that China threatens the whole system... which in turn endangers it and the world. When your wealth is at the expense of the ssttem that gains you wealth... especially if you are going to make enemies along the way... what good does it really do?

__________________
"Man lives in the sunlit world of that which he believes to be reality. But unseen by most is an underworld, a place that is just as real... but not as brightly lit... A DARK SIDE!"
-opening from Tales From the Darkside